The House of Vargas
by Russhka
Summary: As Ludwig explores the infamous Vargas mansion, he slowly starts to realize that nothing is as it seems.  How can Feliciano maintain his friendship with Ludwig and keep the Vargas family secrets a secret?
1. Chapter 1

During a dark and dull day in the middle of autumn, when the clouds hung low and ready to burst; Ludwig found himself driving around the dreariest parts of Florence, Italy – preparing to pay a visit to one of his oldest friends. Feliciano Vargas had been a childhood companion of Ludwig's and the two were once inseparable. Unfortunately, their blossoming friendship had been drawn to an abrupt close when Ludwig's parents died in an accident and he was forced to move back to Germany with his grandfather.

The two friends lost contact and the seemingly unbreakable friendship crumbled. However, several weeks ago, Ludwig had received a letter from Feliciano saying that he would like to see the German in order to repair their relationship. Ludwig had a nagging suspicion that the letter held a deeper meaning, but nevertheless, obliged to the Italian's request.

As he approached the grandiose Vargas estate, he was astonished to find that the manor had lost the stately vigor which he had remembered from his childhood. The garden and shrubbery were unkempt, the paint was chipped and peeled, and the foundation poured innumerable cracks. The house as a whole possessed a melancholy sentiment – perhaps over exaggerated by the withering greenery or the oppressive atmosphere caused by the oncoming storm: all the same, an icy feeling of gloom engulfed him as he paled at these abnormalities.

These changes were unsettling: as he recalled, the Vargas family took great pride in the appearance of their manor as it was a symbol of their great wealth and flourishing business. To see such a drastic and sudden display of carelessness, something unfortunate must have happened – or so he assumed. Once he settled on a parking spot in front of the mansion, a loud clap of thunder sounded from the sky.

Ludwig gingerly stepped out of the car and headed towards the grand entryway of the house. He took one of the two ornate door knockers in hand and gave three loud strikes before proceeding into the estate. Upon entrance, he noticed Feliciano sprawled out on the sofa, no doubt enjoying his midday nap.

This was nothing new. Ever since they were children, Feliciano had the habit of falling asleep at precisely three o'clock p.m. – No matter the place, occasion, or person he fell asleep on. Ludwig placed a hand on the Italian's shoulder and gently shook him in an attempt to rouse the male.

"Feliciano…" he whispered, "wake up…"

Upon mention of his name, Feliciano's eyes slowly slid open; he sat up and let out a brief yawn.  
>The first thing Ludwig noticed about Feliciano was, like his mansion, the Italian seemed to have a disconsolate aura surrounding him – which was also unsettling. Growing up, Feliciano was the most flamboyant person that he had ever known. He was always smiling and always bouncing around. Now the boy possessed a stoic demeanor and his movements were slow and rigid; almost as if it pained him to do so.<p>

"Oh, Ludwig!" Feliciano exclaimed as he threw his arms around the German's neck. "It's so good to see you…" Well, perhaps things weren't as different as he assumed. This was also a common occurrence; Feliciano never made any effort to conceal his feeling or emotions. As a matter of fact, to Ludwig's great annoyance, he made it his upmost priority to display them in the least subtle way possible.

"Yes…" Ludwig replied as he tried to remove the Italian from his person, "It's been quite some time. Have you been well?"

Feliciano nodded with a soft smile which instantaneously faltered.

Ludwig threw his friend a worried glance. "Is there something wrong?" he asked, placing a hand on Feliciano's shoulder. Feliciano winced at the gesture and brushed Ludwig's had away. He immediately rose to his feet with a bounce; taking Ludwig's hands in his.

"Oh! I almost forgot! Are you hungry? The trip here must have been tiring! And boring, and long, and- What would you like to eat? Oh, I know! I'll cook some pasta! Pasta's always a good way to celebrate! What kind of sauce would you like? Oh! I know! I'll make some pesto sauce! You wait right here while I go and make it! I'll be right back! Feel free to make yourself at home!" And before Ludwig could get another word in, Feliciano had vanished into the next room.

He slumped onto the couch in a stupor; it never failed to amaze him at how easily Feliciano could get off topic so quickly. Ludwig breathed deeply before regaining his composure; running a hand through his hair, he stood up and straightened out his coat. He decided to take these few movements of silence as an opportunity to explore his surroundings.

Even though the lighting was dim and a healthy coating of cobwebs and dust crusted the surface of everything not used on a daily-basis, the mansion remained unchanged from what he remembered: extravagant chandlers hanging from the ceilings, rows upon rows of books (ranging from classic fairy tales to medical dictionaries) stacked neatly onto oak bookshelves, imported goods (such as rugs, tapestries, and sofas), family portraits, trophies, and the old Grandfather clock placed in the center of the foyer. Yes, everything was in place; however, the atmosphere couldn't be any more different. Instead of the warm and inviting environment in which he became so familiar with, there was something cold and menacing lingering in the air.

It almost felt as if someone were staring down at him with so much pure hate and malice that they would stop at nothing to make sure that he dropped dead. Perhaps that was a bit of an overstatement (Ludwig tended to be on the overly-superstitious side), but to put it simply: Ludwig did not feel safe in the house.

Another loud clap of thunder sounded, shaking the very foundation of the house. Ludwig shivered. After securing his coat tightly around his body, he went to continue his venture when suddenly, a blood-curdling scream reverberated throughout the mansion and Ludwig could almost feel his heart stop.

Someone stormed loudly down the stairs, screaming at the top of his voice, "Where is that bastard? When I find him, I'm going to kill him!"

Feliciano hurried into the room and firmly embraced the other, "Oh, Lovino! Calm down!"

"Calm down?" he replied, "You want me to calm down? I'll calm down when that bastard Antonio is dead!"

Ludwig could only watch in a daze as the scene in front of him played out.

"Lovino, Antonio isn't here!" Feliciano cried, gripping at his twin brother's shirt.

"Where is he then? I'll chase that little shit to the ends of the earth! How dare he try to escape!" Lovino shook as he spoke, rage visible on the creases of his face.

Without warning, Feliciano landed a slap right on his brother's cheek, "Come to your senses, fratello!" Feliciano screamed as tears streamed down his face, "It's all in your head, Lovino! Antonio is dead!"


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: So just a little notice – I changed a few things in the first part since I found a direction in which to take this story. Please take note that some parts in this story are subject to change. No, it won't ever be anything drastic – just a few details here and there. If I should decide to change anything in the future, I shall send out a notice informing you about it. **

**I would also like to thank everyone for giving this a chance - I have never received so much attention for a story that I have just published. Please bear with my inexperienced writing style; I hope to improve throughout the course of this story. Thank you! **

.oOo.

The storm had lasted deep into the night – sending tremors of thunder throughout the house. Ludwig found it fitting to excuse himself for the day seeing as Feliciano had some family issues to attend to; however, the rainfall had settled into the marshes surrounding the mansion – flooding the area and making impossible for Ludwig to escape. Feliciano happily allowed him to spend the night in an old guest bedroom at the far end of the mansion.

It was a decently sized room; decorated with elaborate furnishings and covered with dust and cobwebs like the rest of the house. However, there were two things that struck Ludwig as peculiar: One). Despite the grand fireplace which currently contained a roaring fire, the room possessed an eerie chill that drowned out all feelings of warmth. Two). It presented a full view of the Vargas family cemetery which happened to be in the back yard.

Not that Ludwig had a problem with dead people – it just made him mildly uncomfortable knowing that they were so close to the house. In his mind, this fact increased the chances of a possible ghost sighting. Why should that be a problem?

Ludwig was a man who hated few things; nevertheless, if there was anything he could say that he hated wholeheartedly – that thing would be ghosts and anything to do with the like. He claimed that this phobia spawned from his brother, Gilbert - who tortured poor Ludwig as a child with ghost stories and fake "hauntings" (these so-called hauntings turned out to be Gilbert and his friends running around the house in bed sheets). Unfortunately, the fear that something would pop out from underneath his bed late at night lasted into his adulthood and the ambiance of the mansion was not doing anything to settle his nerves.

However, before he could give ghosts any more consideration he was interrupted by Feliciano who was frantically searching through a closet for some spare pajamas and fresh linens. "You know, Ludwig… I don't think I have anything down here that would fit you." Feliciano paused for a moment in thought; scratching his chin as he did so. "Oh! Let me check in my grandfather's closet! He was a big man – I'm sure his clothes would fit you!" The Italian let out an excited giggle before springing off into another room.

Ludwig sighed softly before carefully sitting himself on the edge of the bed. It always puzzled him as to how Feliciano always had so much energy – especially this late at night! He gave another sigh and turned his attention to the window. 'I wish they had some curtains, at least- 'he thought to himself, 'This is going to worry me all night.'

"Ludwig…?" Feliciano called from the bedroom doorway; carrying a pair of pink fluffy pajamas, "Is there something bothering you?"

Ludwig turned to face Feliciano – in doing so, catching a glimpse of the fluffy nightmare. He winced. "Errr… No. Nothing. Don't worry about it." He dismissed Feliciano with a wave of the hand.

Feliciano then walked over to him and dropped the pajamas on his lap and took a seat next to him on the bed. "Are you still thinking about what happened with Lovino? I'm terribly sorry if he made you feel uncomfortable…"

Ludwig shook his head.

"He's not well, as you might have guessed…" Feliciano sighed and slumped onto Ludwig's shoulder, "I try to keep him in bed as much as possible but I don't think he realizes what exactly happened."

"What do you mean?" Ludwig threw his friend a questioning glace.

"You mean you haven't heard?"

Ludwig shook his head once again.

"Well, you remember Antonio, right?"

"The Antonio that hung out with my brother when we were children?" Ludwig asked as he tried to recall all of the people he knew with the name, 'Antonio'.

Feliciano nodded. "Well, Antonio and my fratello were dating for several years- They were very, very happy together and Lovino was madly in love with him." He paused and looked up at Ludwig, who motioned for the Italian to continue on with his story. Feliciano rested his head against the other's arm which, oddly enough, sent an eerie chill down Ludwig's spine.

Feliciano continued, "But about… A year and a half ago, Antonio died and Lovino couldn't accept that- I think the only way he could cope with Antonio's death was to pretend that nothing ever happened. I still find him talking with Antonio; and laughing too." Feliciano sighed softly, "I don't even know if he can tell the difference between reality and the world that he made up- It scares me sometimes." He took Ludwig's hand in his and squeezed it tightly. Feliciano's hands were cold- which didn't surprise Ludwig. The room had to be near freezing; literally.

"I didn't even realize that Antonio was dead." Ludwig said; squeezing the Italian's hand in return, "Is that why you called me over here?"

"Kind of!" Feliciano giggled, "I guess I just needed to talk with someone sane for a little while. Besides! I really, really missed you! You hardly write to me anymore…"

"I'm sorry…" Ludwig sighed.

"There's no need to apologize!" Feliciano said with a sad smile, "I know you're very busy with work and all…" He paused for a minute; loosening the grip on his friend's hand. "Well, it's late. I'll let you get some rest."

Ludwig watched as Feliciano as he made his way to the door. "Wait!"

He stopped and turned to look at Ludwig, "Hn?"

"How exactly did Antonio die?"

Feliciano froze. "… I'm sorry. I can't say."

Before Ludwig could question the subject any further, the Italian had already vanished into the hallway; closing the door behind him with a loud smack.

Well, that was odd.

But Ludwig didn't argue with it- he was rather tired after all. Letting out another sigh, he picked up the monstrosity on his lap and examined it. 'These were supposed to be his grandfather's?' he thought to himself, 'I knew the man was a little bit strange, but I never imaged that he would stoop to this level."

Without another complaint, he slipped into them and crawled into bed. 'At least it's starting to warm up in here.'

The room did indeed start to reach a comfortable temperature and the oppressive feeling of being watched slowly melted away as well. A calm feeling of warmth filled his body as he sunk into the bed; wrapping the sheets around himself in order to contain that warmth. He eventually drifted off into a light slumber; always maintaining a slight awareness to his surroundings- just in case a ghost decided to pop out from underneath his bed.


End file.
